Tag Archives: clutches

A few years ago, I did a “What’s in my bag?” post, highlighting what I usually include in and organize an everyday bag or purse. (Hint: I like to use a handbag organizer). When I was putting together my Oscars viewing party recap + style post last week, I realized there was an opportunity to create an “evening bag” spin-off of that idea.

First, here’s the evening bag I wore with my Oscars viewing party outfit. It’s one of my oldest evening bags, a black satin clutch that also includes a beaded handle. (FYI, I added the pins to add a bit of fun and whimsy to my outfit, but they were easy to remove.)

And here’s a peek at how I pare down essentials to include in a smaller evening bag.

Like this:

My friend Christina has the best ideas! She’s the one who invited me to the “cars & couture” local fashion show last summer, and it was her idea to get tickets to the annual local Oscars viewing party, hosted by The Grand Cinema. I am a lifelong Oscars nerd fan, so she did not have to twist my arm to say yes — and then it turned out to be a really fun and unique “double date” when our significant others agreed to come along.

Festive attire dress code

The dress code, as explained on the event’s website, suggested “festive attire.” I had no idea what that meant, so y’all know I looked that up, right? Librarian skillz. 😉 Turns out, “festive attire” is basically like “cocktail attire” but with more sparkle and sequins.

This was a great opportunity for Sam to bust out his formal kilt attire, because YES. And he went full formal, with his tux shirt and buttons and bow tie and fancy, faux-fur sporran. I love love love when Sam gets to wear his formal kilt, because (a) he looks so handsome, (b) the Fraser red tartan is very striking, and (c) he looks so handsome.

And because Sam would be wearing the Fraser red tartan, I knew I would need to incorporate that into my own ensemble. I had two options in my closet that would coordinate with the red tartan: my navy satin-and-chiffon halter dress, seen here, and my purple retro-style dress with the sweetheart neckline, first seen here. Either dress would have been fine, but I decided on my purple cocktail dress as it provided a bit more coverage, and it’s still winter. Practicality, y’all.

Here we are, in our festive finest:

The day before the Oscars viewing party, my friend Christina scored a black velvet wrap dress, seen below. A great find, so classic and flattering! I also loved that she added fun patterns with her clutch and heels. She also convinced her sweetie, Bismark, to incorporate patterns, through his checked button-front and socks. (Sadly, I forgot to get a picture of his socks!).

For fun, as well as to honor Bismark, I added his pin to my clutch. (You can also see a closeup of this pin on my Instagram.) I also added a Jamie Fraser Outlander pin to my clutch, to honor my own Fraser. This pin — which some of you may also have seen earlier this year on my Instagram! — was a Christmas gift from friends in Portland. I also added a Wonder Woman pin, because the movie should have been nominated for multiple Academy Awards this year but was shut out. (Other than Wonder Woman not getting nominated, I was pretty happy with the rest of the nominations. And I was pretty pleased with the eventual winners, too.)

Below is a photo of my other accessories and jewelry. I first added the circular brooch that my husband’s Scottish great-aunt gifted me when we visited her and Sam’s cousins years ago during our trip to Scotland (see this post for more pics during that trip). To coordinate with the black pearls in that brooch, I added two bracelets with black pearls, as well as my headband that looks like it’s made of miniature black pearls. I added more sparkle with my crystal drop earrings, as well as the vintage, Art Deco-inspired brooch from my paternal grandmother.

I used the circular brooch to secure one end of the sash, as you can see above, and I used the Art Deco brooch to secure the top part of the sash on my shoulder, as you can see below.

When I was double-checking to see which shoulder to drape the sash over — wearing it over the right shoulder signifies you are married to a clansman, whereas wearing it over the left shoulder signifies you are married to the clan chieftain — I saw a tutorial for an easy way to do a rosette at the end of the sash. I ended up doing a half-rosette, and I really loved how it finished off one end of the sash. The other end I left hanging down the back.

The viewing party was really well-organized! Everyone got awards booklets, as well as a special, complimentary cookie. There was a private viewing room for VIPs, but we opted for the general admission seats — and I am glad to report that the theatre seats were very cushy and comfortable! When you know the telecast will last 4+ hours, that’s a very important detail! 😉

They also had a fun photo booth downstairs, which was open during the entire telecast. They had all sorts of props to play with, including a miniature Oscar statuette, feather boas, masks, and more. Sam and I opted for black-and-white photos for our turn — we had fun with the Oscars statuette, because OF COURSE — and we went for full color for a group photo booth souvenir. I loved how these turned out!

Finally, some selfies to wrap up the night!

I really enjoyed reliving this fun night while putting this post together — I hope you also enjoyed this Oscars viewing party recap! What did you do for the Academy Awards this year? Please leave a comment and share. 😀

It’s time for my personal interpretation of the new Style Imitating Art (SIA) challenge that I curated this go-round. Since this SIA go-round nearly coincides with the upcoming American holiday of Thanksgiving, I wanted to choose a work that honored Native American perspectives and artistry.

SIA inspiration pick:

I chose a breathtaking new mural in Tacoma entitled “Working Forward, Weaving Anew,” designed by lead artists Esteban Camacho Steffensen and Jessilyn Brinkerhoff. It was painted this past summer, and it’s part of a new dedication by Tacoma in supporting local Native American voices in public art. You can read more about the mural online here and here.

Here is one photo, and portion, of this large-scale mural:

Detail of “Working Forward, Weaving Anew” mural, Tacoma, 2017

My interpretation:

Living in Tacoma, of course I was lucky enough to pose for photos in front of the mural itself! I focused on the colors, combining different shades of blue and beige, as well as combining different textures. I layered a nubby-textured navy blue sleeveless dress over a beige turtleneck, navy tights, and bronze Mary Jane heels. I then layered my tattersall cape-like short coat over that, to add warmth and depth to the look.

My accessories rounded out the outfit and added extra textures: a royal blue patent leather skinny belt; gold earrings in the shape of a ribbon tied with a knot; and a silk dupioni clutch that looks gold in one light with hints of light blue in different light.

Instead of spiking my short hair up or sweeping the bangs off my face, I instead blow-dried it into a sleeker look and smoothed down my bangs. It’s fun to play with my hair, even when it’s short!

I also put my gold ribbon knot earrings in the second, upper hole in my ears, so you could see them better. My paternal grandmother used to make lots of jewelry, including these simple yet striking earrings. I’ve also worn these earrings as a pair of brooches here.

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There is still time to participate in SIA:

Everyone — bloggers, non-bloggers, all genders, all ages, even pets! — is welcome to participate. Just send a pic of an outfit — selfies and flat lays are also just fine — inspired by this week’s SIA artwork to this week’s curator — that’s me! — at librarianforlifestyle@gmail.com by tomorrow, Tuesday, Nov. 21st, by 10 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (PST). I will then post the SIA round-up on my blog on Wednesday, Nov. 22nd — the day before Thanksgiving!

It was a fantastic show, and last week on my Facebook page, I put together a “Cars and Couture Fashion Show 2017” album of photos from the event, including my favorite designs from the show. So definitely browse that album, screenshot below, if you’d like to see some really cool looks from local designers — whose styles were all so different!

Below is a peek at the program from the show — plus my awesome yellow-and-black heels (4 inches!) and my peekaboo vintage book cover purse. My friend and I decided to put in an effort and bust out the heels for the show. We fit right in! 😉

Below is a look at the whole outfit that I wore to the fashion show. I’ve worn my yellow-and-black heels with a cocktail dress, as seen here; with ankle pants, as seen here; and with black jeans, as seen here. This time, I decided to be a little bit different and pair them with my wide-leg black trousers. I knew we had front-row seats, so that when I sat down, my whole shoe would be visible. 😉

And if that top looks vaguely familiar, but also a little different, that’s because I decided to take the attached front ties on the blouse, as you can see here, and wrap them around my neck to let the ends hang down the back.

But of course, when I took a photo on the balcony off the museum’s main level — a view overlooking downtown Tacoma and the harbor — the scarf ends decided to photo-bomb me! 😀

We took these pics during the intermission — thanks, Christina, for taking photos! — when most of the crowd had retreated to either end, the lobby or the balcony, of the museum’s main level. But there were quite a few style bloggers and Instagrammers there, taking photos of their outfits in front of the cars. I was no exception! So instead of cropping this photo below, I decided to keep it wide so you could see some more of the photo-taking action. (I also looooooved the green-and-black hi-lo top the lady to my left is wearing. I would pair that top with skinny pants or jeans and use every excuse to walk around so the back hem would flare out.) The people-watching at the fashion show was almost as good as the couture itself!

Also, a funny story to share with y’all: I had a nice chat with one of the show’s sponsors, who happened to be seated next to us. He was very nice (and very stylish), and remarked at one time that it was obvious that I was interested in fashion. He gestured toward my heels as proof, and I grinned in agreement. Toward the end of our chat, he asked what I did for a living. His face fell into TOTAL SHOCK when I revealed to him that I was a librarian. After he picked his jaw up off the floor, he was then delighted to learn that I had a style blog. I definitely felt like I was helping represent my profession in a positive way in that moment — and perhaps expand expectations of a librarian’s sense of style and love of fashion? 😀

And this combo — skinny or straight-leg jeans with a button-front shirt, either unbuttoned or layered over a tank top — is such an easy and comfortable combo to wear. It doesn’t take much thought at all. Just as easy as a tee + jeans, just a little bit more put-together. And that’s why it’s important to have basics like these in one’s closet, as outfits are then easy to mix and match!

The backdrop is of a nearby church that I’ve long admired, the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Tacoma. Its architecture is stunning! And the front entrance and stairs are so wide and deep, I figured it would be a good backdrop for photos. 🙂

This is a VERY basic outfit, but for me, it’s the details that make this variation fresh, like the gold double straps on the flip flops and the red, white & black pattern on the clutch that ties the whole outfit together.

And when we’re running around town doing errands, I love throwing just a few essentials (e.g. chapstick, cell phone, sunglasses case) in a clutch, and and not having to lug around a big tote bag. It also helps motivate me that I have a growing collection of cute clutches! 🙂

And i just liked the photos below for their more casual view of the outfit — and of me! 😉 And I liked how the deeper red of my manicure and pedicure played off the red jeans and added a bit more depth to the red in the outfit.

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